Help? pH question

[Stinky]

Making Double Gloucester, cheddaring, and at the end of the proposed cycle I tested the pH. It's quite high, somewhere around 6 as far as I can tell. Should I just continue to stack and mill until I get the right pH, 5.4 or so? In a Dulcelife DG a long time back the pH seems to have dropped somewhat after salting?

http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,9952.0.html

Please respond ASAP. Thank you.

[qdog1955]

How are you salting?
Qdog

[Stinky]

After stacking and milling, incorporating them into the curds. From what I can tell the pH should be a whole lot lower by now.

[Kern]

Stinky,

Assuming you used a viable culture in the correct amount the pH should be lower.  The other variables are temperature and the availability of lactose.  You should be keeping the curd around 93-95F and it shouldn't be so dry as to have ALL the whey drained.  Oh, have you calibrated your pH meter lately?     I guess if it were my cheese I'd keep it unsalted and warm as above, check the pH meter (be sure the electrodes aren't clogged with dried cheese goo) and monitor any pH change over the next hour.  If all this fails and the curds have a little bit of tang then I'd probably salt it and go on with the make. 

Yesterday I made some Caerphilly (details posted) and checked the whey pH after the curds were cut.  I checked again after awhile to get a fix on the rate of drop and found no change.  The probe felt a little greasy so I washed it with soap and warm water and retested to find a BIG drop.  Then it was off to the races!   

Kern 

[Stinky]

Well, I'm using pH strips. During the last bit, for cheddaring, just to make sure I'm on the right track.

The temperature is warm. It doesn't seem to be changing, so I'll probably salt it fairly soon.

[OzzieCheese]

@Stinky... The pH strips are ok for broad readings and for cheddar are quite good.  The main pH drop usually occurs during the stacking (Texturing) stage and the milling and salting tend to slow that right down.  My theory is that because cheddar is pressed so heavily and over a long period then the Cheese needs to develop the acid before the salting pressing. Where as Caerphilly doesn't texture as long nor pressed to heavily and therefore the pH develops in the press.  Either the brine method or the dry salting method slowly stops the acid development over a period of time but a Cheddar you probably need the acid development stopped before pressing.  That just the way I see it anywhey !

--Mal